NIKKE, when the stars bloom

"Ah! ... Come to think of it, what do you want to talk to me about alone?"

"..."

After a moment of silence, the white-haired man, whose self-confidence was slightly damaged, looked deeply at someone and then spoke:

"You've turned the Ark upside down in just a few months. I can't see through you. I want to know what path you've chosen."

……

……

"Is this the path you have chosen, Dorothy?"

Click!

After taking a bite of the crisp, sweet and sour apple, Honglian glanced at the plantations in the Garden of Eden and the human men and women who were raising livestock, his tone still as lazy as ever.

"The so-called path for humans and Nikki to live in peace."

"Ah."

Dorothy, who was looking down at the humans' work, could no longer control her joyful expression and turned to look at Snow White excitedly.

"Bai Xue, what would you like to eat tonight?"

"I don't know, I eat whatever Phoenix cooks." The foodie shook his head naively, "Dorothy, I must admit that the Garden of Eden is an excellent shelter, but a shelter is always just a shelter, not even as good as the underground ark.

Do you understand?"

"I understand, but everything you see is just my first step."

Facing Bai Xue's straightforward reminder, Dorothy simply raised her right hand, slightly spread her five fingers, and turned her palm towards the setting sun. Her pair of violet eyes shone brightly under the fiery red sunlight.

"I will lead mankind to the light. We are the goddess of victory, aren't we?"

"Not only that, I will save Nikki and bring them hope of victory as well."

……

……

"What do you think Nikki is?"

"people."

"Humans? But they are machines, human-shaped war machines."

"According to this logic, who do you think you are? Commander John."

The moment John said that Nikki was a humanoid war machine, the harmonious atmosphere disappeared instantly, and was replaced by the pungent smell of gunpowder.

Phoenix put the cup of water in his hand on the coffee table, looked at the pair of blue pupils calmly, and asked calmly:

"If you classify Nikki as a mechanical object, then what are you and I, who have only a few original parts on our bodies, considered to be?"

"A war machine in human form."

Feeling the undercurrent of anger in the black-haired man's eyes, John remained unmoved and gave an iron-blooded answer.

"You, me, and Nikki are nothing more than war machines, war machines to take back the ground for humanity."

"Reclaim the ground?"

Phoenix knew very well that in the game's plot, taking back the ground was John's lifelong wish.

This human hero and genius commander, who was once dubbed "Morning Star" by the Ark, still wanted to contribute everything he had to humanity even though he was backstabbed by the Ark government as per usual.

Regardless, he was a great fighter.

unfortunately,

Phoenix has no such savior dream.

"How naive do you have to be to think that taking back the ground can solve the problem of human survival and dignity?"

The lieutenant grinned, then stepped forward and asked:

"Letcher came down from the sky. What's the point of you taking back the ground? What? Do you think humans can win just by taking back the ground?"

Just a simple set of three questions made John frown on the spot.

However, before the white-haired man could answer, Phoenix narrowed his eyes slightly and continued with murderous intent:

"I'm not like you. I'm not a seeker. From a few months ago until this moment, all I've done is just to survive.

Not only do I have to survive, but the people I care about also have to survive with me.

So my goal is simple..."

"...Whoever kills me, I will kill him."

"Letcher, human, Nikki, I treat them all the same."

Chapter 253: It's a pity we met too late

No matter how talented a person is, he will be trapped by the limitations of the present.

——John is a living example.

For a human who grew up underground, it is a luxury to be able to fight all the way back to the ground and experience the feeling of rain and snow again.

As genius as he is, or as genius as Cecil is, they never thought of the crazy plan of leading humans and Nikki into space to destroy Letcher and his lair.

This is the limitation brought about by the times, environment and society.

But now, the barely perceptible haze was instantly dispersed by a lieutenant named Phoenix with a slap.

Yes,

Regaining ground is merely a phase in a strategy, not the ultimate goal of the entire war.

Humans want to fight a protracted war with mechanical creations with their flesh and blood? Even a fool can understand how stupid this is. If humans want to live with dignity, they have to completely eliminate Letcher...

Or be wiped out by those mechanical spiders.

"I see."

When Phoenix made clear his position, the white-haired man with a heightened consciousness silently closed his eyes, and after pondering for a long time, he said:

"What about the layout? You have the idea, but have you planned the strategic layout to eliminate Letcher? You can't just talk your way into dealing with millions of Letcher troops."

In response to John's question, Phoenix picked up the ice water on the coffee table again, took a sip, and then slowly gave his answer.

"We have to eat one bite at a time. Nikki's technological breakthrough, the mechanized formation of the human army, the training of various talents, and the popularization of energy shield technology are not the most important things at the moment.

What we should do most now is to seize power.

You should know what kind of people those insects on the upper level of the Ark are. I don't want to discuss cooperation with them unless they are willing to shoot themselves in the head first to show their sincerity."

"..."

After listening to the lieutenant's description of the first phase of the strategy, John, the former representative of the Ark Hawks, the morning star of mankind, and Nikki Commander, successfully fell into deep self-doubt.

Compared to Phoenix...

As someone who Fang Ark calls a radical, do you seem a bit conservative in your thinking?

……

The sun sets and the stars hang in the sky.

On this ordinary evening, the two men were chatting in the house like close friends about a matter that could almost determine life and death.

If Snow White hadn't hinted that it was time for dinner, and if Cecil hadn't reminded him that there was a public meeting to be held after dinner, John, who was in the middle of a lively conversation, would probably have dragged Phoenix along to talk all night long.

"Do you still like cooking?"

Walking out of the room, looking at the Nikkis gathered at the door, John calmly teased:

"These, uh, these women have bigger appetites than us. Can you handle it all by yourself?"

"..."

To be honest, most people would not think there is anything wrong with what John said.

But who is Phoenix? As a humble man who would be eaten up by women if he was not careful, the lieutenant's face froze immediately after hearing his friend's teasing, and he almost had a stress disorder attack.

"I have three people here."

The cook, who felt the phantom pain in his waist muscles, did not respond, but asked on his own:

"How many do you have there?"

……

Dorothy, Isabel, Harlan, and Noah, these are the four Nikkis who make up the "Heir Team".

Among them, except Dorothy, the last three successors Nikki are actually non-mass-produced types who defected from the underground Ark. After that, they were transformed by Cecil's prosthetic body, which enabled them to have combat capabilities that surpass the Ark Nikki today.

Of course, compared to the members of the Goddess Corps, their combat effectiveness is still barely qualified.

Chi chi chi chi chi——

In the kitchen of Eden Canteen, Phoenix was stewing braised pork belly, simmering bone broth for braising, and preparing a large number of side dishes, all the while muttering to himself.

"Dorothy has four, plus John and Cecil, that's six. Honglian and I have one and a half, and Bai Xue alone counts as six. So it's thirteen and a half, rounded up to fourteen.

That means I have to prepare 18 dishes as a base, and I have to cook a bucket of rice just for Bai Xue."

Ever since he witnessed the shocking scene of a foodie finishing a whole table of food, the lieutenant suspected that Bai Xue had secretly modified her own artificial digestive system. Otherwise, with her small belly, it would be unreasonable for her to eat as much as she wanted without feeling bloated.

"Commander~"

Just when the cook was busy, Isabel, who had just finished helping Noah with his tasks, suddenly walked into the kitchen quickly. Judging from her still wet hair, she must have taken a bath before coming.

"As a wife, I can help you prepare dinner for everyone."

As the woman spoke, she subconsciously lifted her hair. She looked so charming and virtuous that even though the lieutenant knew that she had serious character flaws, he couldn't help but look at her a few more times.

"How about this, you help me prepare the ingredients. After the soup base is ready, you will be responsible for making the soup and braising the meat, and I will cook the vegetables. We will try our best to ensure the speed and temperature of the dishes."

Feeling the prying gaze of her lover, Isabel, who had been cramming "The Handbook of Women's Stratagems" in private, lowered her head seemingly shyly, but in fact she was secretly delighted.

"Okay, okay."

Clang!

Who would have thought that just after the scheming girl responded, the drunk Honglian suddenly rushed into the kitchen with two big fish caught from somewhere.

"Sir, I like fish, can you cook it?"

"Scrape the scales off, remove the internal organs, and put them on the table." Phoenix was not polite to the wine mangzi's uninvited visit, "Don't get the blood everywhere, go to the sink."

"Very good~ Very good~"

Honglian agreed, then calmly walked to the sink opposite the stove with the two river fish in her hands...

"Huh? What is this?"

Passing by the long table in the middle where the food was placed, Jiumengzi's eyes keenly caught the bottle of white wine on the table, and he immediately smiled and was about to reach out to take it...

Snapped!

Unexpectedly, a pair of kitchen chopsticks hit the back of her hand violently.

"That's cooking wine used to remove fishy smells. If you feel craving for alcohol, go ask Dorothy for it yourself." The man said unhappily, and moved the bottle away.

"Young Master is so stingy."

The swordsman, who was unable to drink the strong liquor, pursed his lips rarely. Just as he was about to go to the sink to deal with the big fish, the door to the kitchen opened again.

"Commander, there are a lot of people dining tonight. Do you need my help?"

Looking back, I saw Bai Xue wearing a cloak calmly walking into the kitchen, her small nose constantly sniffing the tempting scent in the air.

“Is this… a cucumber?”

The foodie who said he was there to help, when he saw a large plate of chilled smashed cucumbers drizzled with scallion oil on the table, immediately walked over out of curiosity, picked up a piece and stuffed it into his mouth.

"!"

The aroma of green onion and ginger mixed with the stimulating aroma of dried chili peppers rushed straight into the nose, and was quickly covered by the refreshing taste of cucumber. The delicious taste that far exceeded expectations immediately lit up Bai Xue's dark golden eyes into a brilliant golden color.

However, before the foodie could praise someone's exquisite cooking skills...

Next second,